Lumbar spinal stenosis is a narrowing of the spinal canal that occurs in the lower (lumbar) part of the spine. The narrowing of the spinal canal may reduce the space available for nerves to exit from the spinal canal due to compression of the spinal canal. When a nerve becomes pinched it can cause pain, tingling, weakness and numbness that may radiate from the lower back to the buttocks and legs.
Prior methods of treating spinal stenosis have included placing mechanical spacer(s) between two adjacent spinous processes. Without wishing to be bound by the theory, the spacer(s) provide relief by lifting and separating the two vertebrae off the pinched nerve by opening the spinal canal. However, current methods are not dynamic remedies that can adjust and adapt to the movement of the spine and the complex interaction that can occur between adjacent vertebrae.